Obamas' to holiday in oil spill-free Gulf Coast to end public stigma

Washington, July 23 (ANI): The Obamas' have changed their vacation plans and will now "spend the weekend" in the Gulf Coast the weekend of August, 14th, the White House announced Thursday.

Both President Barack Obama and US First Lady Michelle Obama have made a big public pitch, encouraging people to vacation on the region's beaches that have not been directly impacted by oil spill.

"There's still a lot of opportunity for visitors to come down here, a lot of beaches that are not yet affected or will not be affected, and we just want to make sure that people who have travel plans down to the Gulf area remain mindful of that, because if people want to know what can they do to help folks down here, one of the best ways to help is to come down here and enjoy the outstanding hospitality," ABC News quoted President Obama, as saying.

During her first visit to the region last week, First Lady Michelle Obama said: "There are still thousands of miles of beaches that have not been touched by the spill. It is vacation time. Folks are looking for things to do with their kids, and this would be a great opportunity to do a few things-help this community, send a different message about the extent of the spill, and also think long term about how the rest of the country can help this economy and the folks down here."

Mrs. Obama's comments were received with mixed messages, as the Obamas' will only spend four days on the beaches of Maine - not the Gulf Coast.

Just this past weekend, the Obamas' spent three days in Maine's Mount Desert Island, home of Acadia National Park.

This will be President Obama's fifth visit to the Gulf Coast since the oil spill and his second overnight stay. The First Lady has previously visited once before and will return again this Friday. (ANI)